The three ninjas stepped out of the orphaheir boots g softly against the gravel path. The faint aroma of grilled meat from a nearby restaurant remihem of their hunger, but before they could move further, a shadow flickered ience before them.

  A figure stood cloaked in darkness. His form was mostly obscured, but his presence alone choked the air with tension.

  A Root ninja.

  None of them met his gaze. None of them dared to.

  The cloaked figure finally spoke.

  "Well?"

  Just one word. Soft, Smooth.

  The question cut through the silence, pulling the trio back to reality. Right. That was their real reason for ing here—'not for nostalgia, not for kindness, but to scout for overlooked talent'.

  Danzo had ordered regur iions of every orphanage in Konoha, ensuring that no potential asset slipped through Root's grasp.

  This was the final check for this orphanage.

  For a moment, no one spoke. The weight of their answer settled between them like an unspoken truth.

  The first shinobi, the one Kazeo had startled, felt his breath hitch. His fiwitched, as if suppressing the instinct to reach for his kunai—an instinct that would be suicidal in this moment.

  He swallowed. "W-We sed the orphans, sir. Most were… average."

  The sed shinobi, his voice quieter, added, "No notable bloodlines. No awakened chakra. Most won't make it past the Academy's first year."

  Silence.

  The cloaked maher moved nor spoke, yet the weight of his gaze bore down on them like an unspoken and.

  The first shinobi hesitated. A lump formed in his throat as he chose his words carefully.

  And then—

  His lips parted, and his voice came out softer thaended.

  "…I think… there was a boy."

  His voice carried uainty, as if he wasn't sure whether he had imagi or if what he experienced wasn't real.

  He reted the i—how a boy, just four years old, had mao sneak up behind him without him notig. How his chakra was locked, yet his presence was like a whisper in the wind.

  "His name is Tanaka Kazeo," he said finally. "Four years old."

  The Root ninja remaiill, abs the information without a single visible rea.

  The others firmed the story, adding their own observations. The boy was unusual, but was he truly exceptional? That remaio be seen.

  A small pouch of ryo exged hands, and just as quickly as he had appeared, the Root ninja flickered away into the darkness, leaving behind only the faint disturbance of air in his wake.

  Yet, as he vanished, a thought lingered in his mind:

  'If the boy really has this ability… how did we miss him?'

  His fingers curled into a fist. He couldn't afford to take ces. Before rep to Danzo-sama, he would have to firm it himself.

  And just like that, Tanaka Kazeo had unknowingly stepped into Root's radar.

  ---

  Present time - (One Month after rebirth)

  ( Kazeo's POV)

  I think I finally uand what my ability is.

  It's presence cealment. And my chakra suppression? That's just a minor effect of it.

  Ever sihose ninjas came, Root has been keeping an eye on this orphahey took two kids already—one of them was my roommate, Kazuma. That was my first real wake-up call.

  Friendship is dangerous in this world.

  The weak die. The stroray.

  I don't pn on beiher.

  Still, I 't help it—I'm getting attached to the kids. Maybe it's because, in my st life, I was an only child. I always wanted a younger sibling, someoo look after, to be a big brother to.

  But this world doesn't give you what you want.

  So, I keep my distance. I py along sometimes, games of hide-and-seek and harmless pranks. Enough to blend in, to not stand out.

  'The rest of my time is spent training and sleeping for 12 hours daily to replenish my strength.

  I also increased my food intake along with training, but retly,

  I found out that Japanese food has almost no good source of protein except meat. Sometimes, I get soy-based food, which I eat in rge quantities to make up for my protein intake a ,that is expensive, so it is not served in the orphanage meals. They only provide meat on special occasions.'

  And even training has to be done carefully.

  Because I know I'm being watched.

  That bastard ninja must have reported what happened. Root agents have been lurking around more than usual. I've felt their eyes oudying, waiting.

  They haven't fronted me. Not yet.

  But I know what they're doing.

  Every so often, they test me. Subtle things—setting up fake blind spots, dropping objects to see if I react before I should, passing by a little too closely. They want to know if what happehat day was a fluke.

  I make sure they think it was.

  Every time, I let them sense me. I let them catch me looking. I pretend to be just another clueless kid. Nothing special.

  But behind that act, I push myself harder.

  My chakra has grown by 10% in a single month. That might not seem like much, but when I pare it to the Root Genin who watches over us, I realize something terrifying—my chakra reserves are already a fourth of his.

  And he's sloppy. He doesn't suppress his chakra near me. I don't know if it's arrogance or just habit, but it gives me something crucial—perspective.

  I'm growing.

  I've also noticed something strange about training in this world.

  In my past life, muscle growth ime. You tore fibers, they healed, they grew stronger. But here? Chakra ges everything. It seeps into the body, reinf it, accelerating recovery, making it strohan what should be possible.

  That's why people like Might Guy exist. It's not just raw effort—it's how chakra is with muscle regeion.

  It was not possible in my previous world .It's not that this world is special , it's just the nature of raw chakra .

  I have a theory, but I won't know for sure until I get access to the Academy's library.

  For now, I'm keeping a low profile.

  My stamina has improved siderably. A month ago, I could barely run 500 meters without feeling like my lungs would explode. Now, I manage a kilometer. The fatigue is still there, but it's not as overwhelming as before.

  But the biggest problem… is my body itself.

  "I still o sleep 12 hours a day; Otherwise,I feel even more exhausted and fatigued.

  One day, I tried to push my limits and trained

  until my body could barely move to reach my

  room.

  Result: I slept for one and a half days due to exhaustion."

  This weakhis stant exhaustion—I don't know when it'll fade. It's like something is holding me back.

  Until that ges, I have to be careful from root's eyes.

  Which means no chakra training for another month.

  It's frustrating.

  But necessary.

  For now, I'll foy body. I'll train in silence, keep my head down, and wait for Root to lose i.

  I don't think my life will have any progress till --Six months.

  So, I will just have to train without expeg much .

  That's how long I'll give myself before making my move in training.

  Until then, I'll grow.

  [ Author here!

  , will be training for minor training arc. Have any new ideas for basic training except solo levelling or Saitama training.????

  If you have any suggestions,

  Let me know.

  Tell me your thoughts on who be better jounin sensei for him to learn yin yang teique. Senju , Nara or Uchiha ?

  ]